Court Report

Mark Faipaua will be sentenced next month after entering into a plea agreement with the government in a stealing case from July 2009. Fiapaua, who is currently serving jail time in a murder case that occurred in September, 2009 was initially charged with first degree burglary and stealing.

However, in a plea agreement the defendant entered a guilty plea to stealing while the government moved to have the burglary charge dismissed. Chief Justice Michael Kruse accepted the plea agreement yesterday morning and ordered a probated sentence report in this matter.

According to the government’s case a security guard that worked about 200 yards from the Tool Shop told police the defendant was with him the night in question. The witness said Faipaua left and later returned with a flashlight, DVD player, black bag which contained a laptop, money and a gold chain.

Another witness told police that Faipaua came to his house with money, beer and a portable DVD player. According to the government’s case, Faipaua admitted to police he got into the Tool Shop by climbing the fence in the back of the building and forcibly entering the Tool Shop building.

Faipaua told police he used the money to buy beer, food and phone cards. The laptop and DVD player were recovered by police.

In September 2009, Faipaua was charged in connection with the murder of 54-year old Lisati Uili. When Mark was sentenced in the murder case, Chief Justice Michael Kruse noted the defendant was not new to the court.

Prior to the murder of Lisati Uili, Faipaua had previously served 20 months in prison for criminally negligent homicide in connection with the death of Tuvalu fisherman, Kalele Kaleka in 2006.

HIGH COURT DENIES MOTION TO REVOKE BAIL FOR TAU MALAE

Associate Justice Lyle L Richmond denied the government’s motion to revoke bail against Tau Malae who’s facing sex related charges on allegations that he performed sexual acts with his wife’s two nieces last year.

He’s charged with sodomy, two charges of first degree sexual abuse, two counts of deviate sexual assault and rape in the first matter. Deputy Attorney General Mitzie Jessop noted that Tau Malae was ordered by the High Court on Feb. 2, 2012 to remain a law abiding citizen as a condition of his pretrial release, and was not to have any contact, directly or indirectly with the complaining witnesses in this case.

However, the defendant is alleged to have failed to abide by both of these conditions of his release.

The government claims that the Defendant and his wife Miracle Malae have been charged with Tampering with a Witness, and Concealing an Offense, on the allegations in a new case against the Defendant and his wife that they had regular contact with both of the complaining witnesses in this case, despite the Court’s Order.

The government alleges both the Defendant and his wife are responsible for applying for new travel documents for the complaining witnesses and are responsible for their one way tickets to Samoa.

The government moved for the court to revoke his bail and remand the defendant into custody without bond until his trial date on Nov.13, 2012 says the motion.

Fiti Sunia in representing the defendant argued there is no evidence on the basis of the revocation of bail for his client and moved for the court to deny the motion.

The Deputy AG asked the court for a brief continuance while she subpoenaed witnesses for this matter. The judges went on a brief recess and came back to deny the government’s motion without prejudice.

Richmond noted the court feels that the basis did not warrant the revoking of bail for defendant, as the second case stated by the government are also allegations, which have yet to be proven.

MIKA A’ASA TO ENTER GUILTY PLEA

A man accused of throwing a rock which hit another man is facing second degree assault and public peace disturbance . He is scheduled to enter a guilty plea in the High Court in two weeks.

A’asa, who’s held on bail of $10,000 appeared in the High Court for his pre-trial conference before Chief Justice Michael Kruse, when Assistant Public Defender Mike White informed the court that a plea offer from the government has been accepted by the defendant. However the proper documents have yet to filed with the court.

White asked the court for a brief continuance to allow him time to file the signed plea with the court. Kruse accepted the request and scheduled this matter for next week. The second degree assault charge is a class D felony punishable with up to five years in jail, a fine of $5,000 or both.

According to the government’s case, police received a call regarding a public peace disturbance in Petesa, and when they responded, they found the victim lying on top of a grave in front of his house. The victim’s face was swollen and covered with blood.

Witnesses told police the reason the defendant threw a rock at the victim was because the victim assaulted the defendant’s younger brother. The defendant admitted that he threw the rock at the victim head’s after he punched him.